MVC--April 9-10: Cubs @ Pirates

April 9-- Cubs @ Pirates: W 6-4

1. Ryan Dempster--Pitched 7 innings and only allowed one hit. Very good performance.
2. Felix Pie--hit game winning RBI single in the 15th inning.
3. Reed Johnson--RBI single in the 3rd gave the Cubs an early 1-0 lead.

April 10-- Cubs @ Pirates: W 7-3

1. Geovany Soto--Game winning 2 run home run in the 6th.
2. Jon Lieber-- 4.1 shutout innings.
3. Derrek Lee--2 RBIs

Scoring: 3 points for game’s MVC, 2 points for 2nd best impact, and 1 point for 3rd best impact.

Season Standings:

Kosuke Fukudome +7
Derrek Lee +6
Ryan Dempster +6
Carlos Zambrano +5
Jon Lieber +5
Aramis Ramirez +3
Geovany Soto +3
Felix Pie +2
Reed Johnson +2
Carlos Marmol +1
Kerry Wood +1
Ronny Cedeno +1

Season Winners:

Dempster +2
Fukudome +1
Lee +1
Zambrano +1
Lieber +1
Soto +1

Most Valuable Cub!

For the 2008 season, I decided to come up with a way to decide who will be the Most Valuable Chicago Cub or MVC. Being the most valuable player is different from being the best player. You have play great in key situations and be one of the main reasons your team won that day. The player with the best stats is not always MVP. For example, say Player A goes 3 for 4 with 2 doubles. Pretty good right? But what if he got all 3 hits with the bases empty and he never scored? Those 3 hits were a waste. Now how about Player B who goes 1 for 4 with a single but that single scores the final two runs and the team wins by one run? Player B in my mind is the MVP because his single won the game for the team.

What I have done so far is pick a MVC for each Cubs game that the Cubs win. I'll do it sometimes for extra innings losses too. If the Cubs lose by 7 runs, obviously it is gonna be hard to pick a MVC so there will be game in which I don't pick a MVC. Because baseball is a team sport, here is how I will award points to players:

3 points for game’s MVC, 2 points for 2nd best impact, and 1 point for 3rd best impact.

I've already started this and I'll try to update the standing every week.

Season Standings:

Fukudome +7
Lee +5
Zambrano +5
Ramirez +3
Dempster +3
Lieber +3
Johnson +1
Marmol +1
Wood +1

Season Winners:

Fukudome +1
Dempster +1
Lee +1
Zambrano +1
Lieber +1

March 31, 2008- Brewers @ Cubs: L 3-4
MVC of the game: Fukudome
Fukudome +3
Zambrano +2
Marmol +1

April 3, 2008- Brewers @ Cubs: W 6-3
MVC of the game: Ryan Dempster
Dempster +3Fukudome +2Ramirez +1

April 5th, 2008- Astros @ Cubs: W 9-7
MVC of the game: Derrek Lee
Lee +3
Fukudome +2
Johnson +1

April 6th, 2008 – Astros @ Cubs: W 3-2
MVC: Carlos Zambrano

Zambrano +3
Lee +2
Wood +1


April 7th, 2008 – Cubs @ Pirates: W 10-8
MVC: Jon Lieber

Lieber +3
Ramirez +2
Cedeno +1

Will the high expectations hurt the Cubs?

There is no question that a lot of people expect the Cubs to win the division again. The team has seemed to improve and the rest of the division hasn’t improved enough to contend with the Cubs. Last year, the Cubs won the division by default. This year, teams like Milwaukee, Houston, and Cincinnati have gotten a little better so the Cubs might not be able to back into a division championship. No big deal because the Cubs are the better team right?


Consider this:

It’s April and the 2008 season has begun. Almost every media outlet has picked the Cubs to make the playoffs and a few even have them as the favorite to win the NL. Clearly, the Cubs are no longer underdogs. However, the Cubs lose 3 close games to start the season. It’s only 3 games in a long season but a winning streak doesn’t immediately happen. Two weeks into the season, the Cubs are 4-8 and 4 games behind the 8-4 Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central. It’s not just the team that’s doing badly, but some of the stars are struggling as well. Carlos Zambrano has a decent 3.45 ERA in 3 starts but his record is 1-2. In his last start, he lost despite pitching seven innings and allowing three runs. He could be 2-1 right now, but he’s 1-2 and that record doesn’t look Cy Young Award-caliber.

Alfonso Soriano in 50 ABs has a .222 BA. He has had four instances already this season in which he hit the ball hard for outs. Had those balls landed, Soriano would be hitting .300 right now. However, the fielders either made a nice catch or were in the right spot at the right time so Soriano has a mediocre .222 BA instead. Meanwhile, the media is going nuts. 4-8 isn’t terrible but the local media has already witnessed what slow starts did to the Chicago Bears and the Chicago Bulls. They pound Lou Piniella and the rest of the team with questions that range from “How can you guys improve?” to “Are you worried about how well the Brewers are doing?” The media is already asking Jim Hendry if he is thinking of making any deals. Hendry tells the media that he is not currently in discussion with any potential trades, but now some of the players are worried that they will be traded or released if the team doesn’t start playing better. The losing continues and the media continues to ask why this team is 7-15 instead of 15-7. The Cubs do eventually start playing better but it is a little late. The Cubs end the season in 2nd place, just 3 games behind the NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers.

This is just an example and probably won’t happen, but it definitely could. Look how teams like the Chicago Bulls and Bears had such high expectations but the media started attacking them just 2 weeks into the season. The pressure was too large and they weren’t able to improve. Being the favorites can be a bad thing. A lot of times, it’s easier to be the underdog than being a favorite in which you are being criticized for every time you fail to do what is expected. The media was a little more understanding last year when the Cubs struggled because Piniella was in his first year, Soriano was trying to adjust to being on a new team, and the Cubs, despite getting a $300 million makeover, were still the defending last place team of the division. The media won’t be easy on the team this year if the 2008 Cubs struggle out of the gate. My point is that it is very important that the 2008 Cubs get off to a good start. If they don’t, I can almost guarantee you it will be ‘wait till next year’ for the Cubs.

Brady on the Bears vs. Grossman on the Pats

This is originally from a post I made at the chicagobears.com message board:

Let's pretend that Tom Brady played his entire 2007 season with the Bears and Rex Grossman played his entire 2007 season with the Patriots.

Let's look at how Tom Brady would do:

First of all, Brady does not have Randy Moss as his #1 target. Brady's go-to guy is Bernard Berrian. Berrian probably gets about 10 more catches with Brady as his QB and gets maybe 2 more TDs.

Berrian's 2006 stats: 81 catches 1085 yards 7 TDs

Better...but he's still no Randy Moss.

Brady is playing behind a weak o-line and gets sacked 40 times. Because the Bears have no running game, Brady has to pass more and the opponent defense often goes in dime package knowing the Bears have no running game. The 2 extra defenders in the secondary causes Brady to have an average completion %. The QB pressure affects him and he ends up throwing 5 more interceptions than he would on the Patriots. His number 2 receiver isn't Wes Welker...it's Mushin Muhammad. Tom Brady has Devin Hester but the O-Line does a poor job of giving Brady enough time to get set and throw it to Hester deep downfield. When Brady gets time, he makes his usual good throws, but remember he has Bears receivers now. Berrian runs the wrong routes a few times and Muhammad continues to drop passes.

Brady with the Patriots in 2007:
16 G 4806 yards 68.9% 50 TD 8 INT 21 sacks 300.4 yards/gm

Brady with the Bears in 2007:
16 G 4100 yards 63.5% 22 TD 13 INT 40 sacks 256.3 yards/gm

Now let's look at Rex Grossman:

Rex Grossman is living the good life. His has an athlete 6-4 wide receiver named Randy Moss, a new #2 wide receiver named Wes Welker who had productive seasons with the Dolphins, 3 other solid wide receivers (Stallworth, Gaffney, and Watson) in case Moss and Welker are covered, and he has Laurence Maroney and Kevin Faulk instead of Cedric Benson and Adrian Peterson. It's hard to examine Rex Grossman using his 2007 stats. Not enough games played and the o-line was much better in 2006. Randy Moss had 23 TDs with Tom Brady. Tom Brady didn't magically turn Moss into a pro bowl receiver. Moss had similar stats in 2003 with 17 TDs on the Vikings. The QB was Daunte Culpepper. Rex Grossman and Culpepper have similar stats so Moss loses only 5 TDs with Rex as his QB. Welker had 112 catches and 1175 yards and 8 TDs with Brady. He had 67/687/1 with the Dolphins (QB: Joey Harrington for most of the season). Grossman is better than Harrington so Welker gets 75 catches for 780 yards and 5 TDs. The rest of the receivers under Brady scored 19 TDs. They score 10 with Rex.

Grossman with the Bears in 2006:
16 G 3193 yards 54.6% 23 TD 20 INT 21 sacks 199.6 yards/gm

Grossman with the Pats in 2007
16 G 4000 yards 63.5% 32 TD 10 INT 21 sacks 250 yards/gm

The point of this is to shown that Tom Brady isn't the greatest QB of all-time. Look at Brady's numbers before he got Moss, Welker, and Stallworth. My other point is that Rex Grossman isn't a bad quarterback. Grossman is a pro bowl QB with the Patriots.

Even at 5-8, Bears have slim playoffs hopes

As of today, the Bears can still make the playoffs and the scenerio of that happening isn't as wacky as you might think.

Here is a scenerio that might happen and would get the Bears into the playoffs:

Bears win remaining 3 games (at Minnesota, at Green Bay, New Orleans)
Redskins loses at Minnesota, vs. Dallas, at NY Giants
Panthers loses vs. Dallas, vs. Seattle, at Tampa Bay
Vikings loses vs. Bears and at Denver, wins vs. Washington
Arizona loses at New Orleans and vs. St. Louis, wins vs. Atlanta
Lions loses at San Diego and at Green Bay, wins vs. Kansas City
Saints loses at Bears, wins against Arizona and Philadelphia
Eagles loses at Saints and at Cowboys, wins vs. Buffalo

NFC Wild Card Standing:
1. NY Giants
2. BEARS (8-8)
------------------
Vikings (8-8)---division record tie-breaker
Saints (8-8)----head-to-head tie-breaker
Cardinals (7-9)
Lions (7-9)
Redskins (6-10)
Eagles (6-10)
Panthers (5-11)

Bears have better than slim playoff hopes

Believe it or not, every team in the NFC are still alive in the playoff race. Every team. Yes, the Falcons, 49ers, and Rams all are not eliminated yet from making the playoffs. So, if the Falcons have a shot, you better believe we have a shot.

The Bears main goal right now is to get back to .500 (7-7)

Bears play the Redskins on Thursday and then have nearly 2 weeks to prepare for the Viking on MNF. I think the Bears can win both games. The Redskins will be emotional unprepared for Thursday's game and just suffered a tough loss to the Buffalo Bills. The Bears are angry and can't wait to let off their angry on the Redskins. As for the Minnesota game, like I said the Bears will have about 11 days to prepare. They have already faced the Vikings once and that helps. The Bears have to figure out how to stop Adrian Peterson. Putting 8 men in the box might be able to stop him. The Bears should let the Vikings try to beat them with their weak passing attack. Adrian Peterson beat the Bears by himself in the last meeting. The Vikings would have lost without him. If the Bears take him out of the game, the Bears will win.

Upcoming schedules (possible results):

Detroit Lions schedule:
Sun 12/9 Dallas 1:00 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 at San Diego 4:15 pm LOSS

Arizona Cardinals schedule:
Sun 12/9 at Seattle 4:05 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 at New Orleans 1:00 pm LOSS

Carolina Panthers schedule:
Sun 12/9 at Jacksonville 1:00 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 Seattle 1:00 pm LOSS

Washington Redskins schedule:
Thu 12/6 Chicago 8:15 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 at NY Giants 8:15 pm LOSS

New Orleans Saints schedule:
Mon 12/10 at Atlanta 8:30 pm WIN
Sun 12/16 Arizona 1:00 pm WIN

Minnesota Vikings schedule:
Sun 12/9 at San Francisco 4:05 pm WIN
Mon 12/17 Chicago 8:30 pm LOSS

New York Giants schedule:
Sun 12/9 at Philadelphia 1:00 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 Washington 8:15 pm WIN

Here is the NFC Wild Card Standings after 14 games:

1. NY Giants (9-5)
2. New Orleans Saints (7-7)
--------------------------
Chicago Bears (7-7)
Minnesota Vikings (7-7)
Arizona Cardinals (6-8)
Detroit Lions (6-8)
Philadelphia Eagles (6-8)

If the standings gets to that point, Bears control their own destiny. Wins against GB and the Saints would get them into the playoffs as the 2nd wild card team.

Why I want Kobe Bryant in a Bulls Jersey

Maybe you agree with me, maybe not. Yes Kobe would be the go-to scorer the Bulls need and might be the player the Bulls need to take that next step, but here is why I really want Kobe:

In the 9 years since Michael Jordan played his last game with the Bulls, the closest player the Bulls came to having a superstar was Jalen Rose. The Bulls don't get respect because no one knows any of the players. Ben Wallace might be a recognizable name but he is more well-known for his afro or his fight with Ron Artest. I wonder how many ordinary fans know about Wallace's defensive ability. Kobe Bryant is well-known for all the right reasons. He is one of the best scorers in the NBA and he has 3 championships. He is the only active player to score 81 points in a game. Michael Jordan never scored 81 points in a game! Bryant is so famous that his 4 letter first name, Kobe, is recognizable. You tell someone that Kobe scored 34 points, everyone knows which Kobe you are talking about. Sure the Bulls have players that can be identified by their first name. They got players whose names are Thabo, Tryus, Jokiam, and Luol. The problem is, Bulls fans are the only fans who know the last name of those players. You think Luol Deng is a superstar? How many times is his name mentioned on ESPN? Why do fans want their team to win championships? It's because they want the nation to pay more attention to their city. The L.A. Galaxy got David Beckham this year. Did they think he'd be a good contributer? Maybe, but they'd be lying if they didn't think Beckham to draw attention to their team. I'm sure many people had not even heard of the L.A. Galaxy before Beckham joined the team.

Will Kobe get the Bulls a championship? I don't know. But the Bulls have a chance to get the best player in the NBA. We as fans will have the opportunity to see a NBA superstar 3-4 times a week. ESPN and other media outlets will be talking about what happened in Chicago not what is going on in LA or New York. I have been to about 2 Bulls games but I never saw Michael Jordan play in person. I am going to a Bulls game in December. This could be my only opportunity to witness a live performance by a future NBA hall of famer. The Bulls have to make this trade. I'm tired of the Chicago Bulls not getting the attention they deserve, less than a decade after they were the greatest team in the world. The Bulls no longer have Jordan and the Cubs no longer have Sammy Sosa. It's time for Chicago to have a superstar. I don't care what it costs. I want Kobe Bryant on the Bulls more than an Eastern conference title, which is the farthest this Bulls team will go in the playoffs.